I've been having problems getting my Synaptics touchpad on my Gentoo laptop working on the development kernels from 2.5.70 on. I finally got it working on 2.6.0-test1 but only after cobbling together information from different sources, so I thought I would summarize it all here in one spot. The solution I have might work with kernels > 2.5.70, but I haven't gone back to try.

1. When compiling your kernel make sure that under "Input device support" you compile in "Event interface", which allows input device events to be accessible via /dev/input/eventX, where X will be a number that varies from machine to machine. I have this compiled directly into the kernel, since I use the touchpad all the time.

2. Compile your kernel and install it in /boot as you normally would. Reboot using your brand new kernel.

3. Figure out what input event devices your system is tracking by looking in /dev/input. You should see some input devices as follows:

Code:

# ls /dev/input
event0 event1 event2 mice mouse0

4. Figure out which input event devicce corresponds to the touchpad by typing:

Code:

# cat /dev/input/event0

and then running your finger over the touchpad. If this is the right input device, there will be a bunch of garbage on the screen as you use the touchpad. If not, cat the other eventX devices until you find the right one.

5. Install the latest version of the Synaptics touchpad driver, located at http://w1.894.telia.com/~u89404340/touchpad/index.html. Extract the archive, and copy the driver "synaptics_drv.o" into the XFree module folder, which usually is at /usr/X11R6/lib/modules/input/. You will have to do this as root.

6. Modify your /etc/X11/XF86Config file as follows:
a. In the module section of XF86Config, add the line

Code:

Load "synaptics"

b. Add or modify the InputDevice section of XF86Config so that you have these settings for the touchpad. This is what my XF86Config looks like:

Configure the kernel with psmouse support as a module or compiled into the kernel. I already had it compiled into the kernel. Make sure you enable the following under Input Device Support: Input Devices, Event Interface, Mice->PS/2 Mouse.

Compile the kernel and install it.

Now, you have two choices on how to configure /etc/X11/XF86Config. The first one works with both 2.4.x and the 2.6.0-beta1 kernels, so if you are jumping around between 2.4.x and 2.6.x, this is the easiest way to go:

as a small note, spyderous has added the synaptics driver to the latest xfree-4.3.0-r3.ebuild. saves you the time of downloading and mucking by hand. just need to do the X configuration stuff._________________overlays - Use at your own risk. File bug reports on this stuff and i'll kick you in the junk. Ask me before asking upstream if these fail. I mean it. No, really.

Actually, up until I got my touchpad working, PS/2 compatibility mode was what I was using as well.

Hopefully you'll get full functionality soon. It looks like some Synaptics patches are still being worked on with the 2.6 series._________________I'm only hanging out in OTW until I get rid of this stupid l33t ranking.....Crap. That didn't work.

I updated my C400 BIOS from A03 to A11 (the latest) and now I have 2.6.0-test1 and the touchpad working using the Synaptic's driver (the one bundled with the current xfree ebuild) and your instructions.

Recently after doing a emerge -u world my tap to click stopped working. Xfree-4.3.0-r3 was emerged in, with synaptics driver included, so I believe that this is my problem. I was using kernel 2.4.20-gentoo-r5 and after the update I was unable to use the advanced features of the touchpad such as scrolling along the right side of the pad and tap to click. After looking at the log file, and this post, I decided to try using kernel 2.6.0. Now, I almost have it working again. Everything seems ok except the tap to click. I've spent some time reading a number of threads about this and I seem to see that tap to click was disabled in the kernel driver as of late 2.5.x kernels. Does anyone have tap to click working on 2.6.0 with the synaptics_drv.o that was built with xfree-4.3.0-r3, and if so what did you do to get it working? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Yes, this synaptics driver stuff is quite strange. I've never had a problem with my touchpad in 2.4.x; clicking, dragging, tap-clicking and tap-dragging, scrolling etc. has all worked fine... now with 2.6.x, I have to do all of this runaround..._________________-Phil Crosby

thx for the writeup wilberpan, I tend to avoid looking through any posts that accumulate to more then five pages (as the 2.5 and 2.6 kernel threads did/do) to find that tidbit of information on why my hardware isnt working properly...mabye its just me but the howto stuff which stays around a single page and gives me explicit instructions tends to tickle my fancy more...

Anyway, instructions worked perfectly for a dell inspiron 5150, save one detail, how do I/can I run tpconfig with this driver (I want to get the lefttouch and righttouch via going)

running tpconfig
as a user i get:
fatal: Could not open PS/2 Port [/dev/psaux]

as root i get:
fatal:

No Synaptics or ALPS touchpad device found

but the thing is that I *only* seem to get mouse input from /dev/input/event1, /dev/mouse and perhaps more importantly /dev/psaux dont give me anything when I cat them and use the mouse, so im not sure that tpconfig is even checking in the right place (not am I sure that It could interpert the event interface)

Anyway, instructions worked perfectly for a dell inspiron 5150, save one detail, how do I/can I run tpconfig with this driver (I want to get the lefttouch and righttouch via going)

Sorry, can't help you much there. I don't use tpconfig. I tried emerging it, and got the same error you did. Up/down and left/right scrolling with the touchpad works for me.

Regarding the output from /dev/input/eventX, on my laptop event0 appears to be linked to my touchpad, event1 is linked to my keyboard (pushing keys leads to a lot of garbage, even with just pushing the shift key), and event2 is linked to my USB mouse._________________I'm only hanging out in OTW until I get rid of this stupid l33t ranking.....Crap. That didn't work.

I did try the kernel-supplied synaptics driver, which didn't work for me. Hence, my original post in this thread._________________I'm only hanging out in OTW until I get rid of this stupid l33t ranking.....Crap. That didn't work.

What are the advantages of running the synaptics touchpad driver over my current setup of IMPS/2 on psaux. Also considering on my Dell i4100 i use a ps2 mouse too some times will synaptics driver screw my mouse? DO i need to go to usb ?_________________Every begining is another begining's end.

Still having problems here. When using the synaptics driver X just halts. Or actually the whole computer halts. Only way out is to poweroff (hardware).
I have everything set up according to this thread but it wont work.
Just want to use 2.6 because it seems to support the BIOS on the Compaq EVO 800v so I finally get battery readings._________________A bus station is where a bus stops, a train station is where a train stops. On
my desk I have a work station..
Nixadmins.net
FLUG member 473

Hello. I have reported this issue to the kernel.org bugzilla as bug 1072. If any of you would like to add to what I've said or report individual issues please do so by adding comments to that bug report giving full details of your machine. Don't forget to report all issues that you may have with 2.6 kernel series so that the final release may be as stable and featureful as possible. Many thanks._________________http://dhruba.name/

it works only if psmouse is compiled into the kernel for me
indeed, if i try to load the module after booting (or adding it into /etc/modules.autoload), the module loads without errors, but doesn't work in X
hw: dell inspiron 8100
kernel: 2.6.0-test3-mm2

I didn't have to configure anything special with kernel 2.6.0-test7 and xfree-4.3.99.13. just enabled synaptics driver in kernel (input devices) and created XFree config file with xf86cfg. everything got autodedected and worked out of the box.

I didn't have to configure anything special with kernel 2.6.0-test7 and xfree-4.3.99.13. just enabled synaptics driver in kernel (input devices) and created XFree config file with xf86cfg. everything got autodedected and worked out of the box.

The scrolling and what not too? (I ask only because I was not aware I had this feature until a friend with the same computer running windows commented on my lack of it)

Joined: 04 Sep 2002Posts: 293Location: where the hell is Tesuque, New Mexico?

Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2003 6:26 pm Post subject:

nalin wrote:

The scrolling and what not too?

Yes, the scrolling works for me -- I drag my finger along the right edge of the touchpad, it's like the mouse wheel on a wheel mouse. So I get scrolling in my XTerms without sacrificing screen real-estate to a scroll bar. And I get it in Emacs my enabling "mouse-wheel-mode" minor mode.

Dragging along the bottom edge of the touchpad results in another axis of wheel-mouse-age, interpreted by some programs as horizontal scrolling.

I had posted in previous forums that the Synaptics support is not there yet -- but with the 2.6.0-test kernels, it is working very well for me. (Dell Inspiron 8000).